


Bound to You

by CSM



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Drama, F/M, Handcuffs, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Injured Oliver, Oral Sex, Post 3x14, UST to RST, taking care of each other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-22
Updated: 2015-03-06
Packaged: 2018-03-14 12:35:17
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,459
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3410834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CSM/pseuds/CSM
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The only time handcuffs and Oliver Queen belonged in the same sentence, was when it involved her bed and minimum clothing, it never included being kidnapped and fighting for her life</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I was given the prompt: Cuffed but with Olicity. If you're a Castle fan, you know exactly what this means. If not I'm simply taking the handcuffed together trope and putting a twist on it. This takes place after 3x14

It’s not the pounding in her head that awakes her, or the feel of the hard mattress, filled with what can only bee straw sticking into her back. It’s the heavy weight resting on her thigh, the coarse jeans material rubbing against her inner thigh. Her dress is bunched up at her waist, and there is a solid weight across her stomach. Her eyes fly open in alarm, and she’s only greeted by darkness, increasing her panic tenfold. She feels a hot breath, tickling her ear and she freezes.

“Please don’t be a killer animal.”

She pleads softly as she slowly turns her head, her eyes shut as she braces herself. She slowly opens her eyes, and can vaguely make out short blond hair against an all to familiar jawline, and breathes a short sigh of relief.

“Oliver.” She whispers, just incase their kidnappers are near. She huffs in exasperation when he doesn’t move, “Seriously? A toothpick snapping could wake you up! Oliver!”

Suddenly, she’s gasping in surprise as Oliver springs up in one swift movement straddling her before she can blink. His forearm rests on her throat, but not pressing into it as she expects, his eyes wild.

“Oliver!” She gasps out, her hand grasping his other arm that’s next to her face.

“Felicity,”

Oliver stutters out in surprise, he tries to scramble away from her but they both end up yelping in pain at the strong tug at their wrists. Oliver remains straddling her legs as he leans back against his heels, knees pressed against her thighs as he raises his arm examining the metal cuffs around his right wrist. He follows the chain to her left wrist, which is also encased by the metal cuffs. Her breath catches when Oliver gently moves the cuff up her hand, and then runs his thumb along her wrist soothingly.

“Did I hurt you?” He asks softly, his eyes flicker to her face briefly before he turns his attention to her wrist.

There is a small red line around her wrist, but she cant't even focus on that, her mind only preoccupied with the feel of Oliver's muscular thighs pressed into her own. She licks her lips nervously as she gazes up at him, "Oliver."

Oliver tears her gaze away from her wrist that's still cradle in his hands to look at her with concern, when her gaze falls to their lower halves, his eyes widen comically as he quickly slides off of her, releasing her hand as he sits adjacent to her hips. His eyes sweep down the length of her body, and she knows he's checking for anymore injuries, but he then diverts his gaze towards the ceiling.

"Uh.. Felicity," he gestures uncomfortably at her lower half, the metal chain of the handcuffs jingling, his eyes still fixated on the ceiling.

Felicity frowns at his odd behaviour but then gasps in horror when she sees her Captain America underwear staring back at her. She sits up abruptly, tugging her dress over her legs, her hands folded in her lap. She does not notice Oliver's limp hand that has coincidentally followed her own hands as she grumbles to herself, "So not how I pictured you seeing my underwear for the first time."

"Felicity." Oliver says with a strained voice.

"Oh god, I said that aloud didn't I?" Felicity asks in horror.

"Felicity." Oliver repeats tensely, eyes flying to his hand that is now resting in her lap, his fingers flexed.

"Oh!" Felicity says in alarm flinging their jointed hands out of her lap and accidentally slapping Oliver in the face, "I'm sorry! Oh god, forget our kidnappers, I'm just going to kill us both in my awkwardness."

Her remark earns a small smile from Oliver as he rubs his chin more amused than anything, his initial shock at their current predicament clearly wearing off, unlike Felicity who seems to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

"Okay, let's just stop for a moment." Oliver says calmly, gently holding her wrist and placing their joint hands between them. The metal cuffs clinking as they touch, the sound echoing throughout the room, "We need to figure out where we are. What was the last thing you remember?"

Felicity nods taking a deep breath at his words as she begins to scan the dimply lit room. She bites her lip nervously as she thinks back, "I told you I should have changed clothes before we left."

"Felicity, so not the time." Oliver says in exasperation, his own eyes straining to take in the room as well.

"No, no. I mean that was the last thing I remember." Felicity corrects, she tugs gently on the cuffs to gain his attention. When Oliver turns to face her, she can just barely make out his blue eyes, "We were on our way to the foundry so that you could get your suit. We got a lead on the triad and you said we didn't have time for me to get a change of clothes at my apartment and for you to get your suit, so we were heading straight to the foundry. I wanted to wear something less conspicuous for field work, but you were being your pigheaded self and said it wasn't necessary because I wasn't going to be anywhere near the guards. So much for that."

Oliver grunts at her jab, but other than that doesn't give any other indication that she was making a valid point, "I remember walking in the alley outside of Verdant and then..."

Suddenly he was on his knees, his hands in Felicity's hair, his fingers running down her neck and bare arms. Felicity tenses in surprise, her hand jerking with each tug of his hand that's chained to her, "Oliver!"

"Fuck." Oliver hisses, his callous fingers rubbing against a sore spot behind Felicity's neck, "They drugged us. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine." Felicity says, the unease feeling building in the pit of her stomach. Their situation seems to be getting worse by the minute. She spots the dark red dot on Oliver's neck, her own fingers automatically going to the spot, her red nail polish standing out against the pale colour of his skin.

"Are you?" At his look, she rolls her eyes removing her hand from his neck, "Just 'cause you have like super human metabolism doesn't mean that whatever they gave us couldn't affect you."

Oliver gives her an amused look as he slowly gets to his feet, mindful of their jointed hands, "C'mon we gotta move before they come back."

"Move where?" Felicity asks, gesturing widely to the empty room, but stands nonetheless. She finally takes in Oliver's jeans and leather jacket and frowns, "Oliver, you're not in your suit."

"I know, we were on our..." Oliver trails off, the implications of her words finally hitting him, "Who would want to kidnap Oliver Queen?"

"It still freaks me out when you talk about yourself in the third person." Felicity remarks, she then looks at him horrified, "The League?"

Oliver looks at the handcuffs and then the bare mattress, the sound of dripping water echoing in the distance, "They would have just killed us. It's not them."

She does not bother to argue with him, preferring to just believe him because she's pretty sure she would not be able to keep a level head if she thought for a moment Ra's and his minions were coming for them. The word minions has her giggling to herself as she pictures tiny little yellow creatures dressed in all black wielding swords. At her giggle, Oliver comes to an abrupt stop to look at her curiously.

"You don't wanna know what goes on in here." Felicity says truthfully tapping her finger against her temple to emphasize her point.

Oliver looks ready to argue but just shakes his head, Felicity just barely sees the small smile that tugs at his lips before he turns his focus back to the room. She winces slightly when he picks up his speed and tugs at her hand accidentally, "Another body attached here!"

"Sorry." Oliver says sheepishly waiting for her to talk the short stride up to him. His free hand is pressed against the wall as he feels his way around.

Felicity can barely make out the outline of his silhouette, the one dim light that hung over the mattress no longer reaching the deep corners of the room, "I really wish you had on your suit now."

Oliver pauses at her words and she feels more that sees him turn to face her and she knows he's quirked an eyebrow at her questioningly. Despite the fact that she can barely make out his face she stutters out a reply, "Not that I don't appreciate the jeans, you wear a pair of jeans really well...I mean..."

His lack of response has her ploughing through, thankful he can't see her red face. She thought she'd gotten over her inability to have a filter, clearly being cuffed to Oliver Queen has rendered her incapable of keeping her mind out of the gutter. "I slipped a flashlight in one of the pockets of you suits. It would be helpful right now."

"And the boots I'm wearing are the ones that don't have a tracker." Oliver says clearly annoyed with his lack of foresight.

Felicity shakes her head at his ability hold the weight of the world's troubles on his shoulders. She's pretty sure neither of them could have predicted that their journey to the foundry would have ended up with them in handcuffs. The only time handcuffs and Oliver Queen belonged in the same sentence, was when it involved her bed and minimum clothing.

"Handcuffs were never really my thing." Oliver supplies easily. They have moved towards the centre of the room, having come to a dead end and Felicity can see the smirk gracing his features at her remark.

Felicity jumps back in horror her hands covering her face, she ignores the slight wince Oliver releases from her sudden movement, too embarrassed, "I can't believe I said that out loud."

"Its fine." Oliver promises, not bothering to tease her further, both of them aware of the weird limbo they have been since his return a few weeks ago.

Felicity bites her lip, on one hand she's glad he's dropped the subject for her benefit, but one the other hand she feels like she's sending him mixed signals and thinks she needs to apologize. She meant what she said in the alley that fateful night, she should not be messing with his mind no matter how inadvertently it was. She's about to apologize, when suddenly Oliver is on his knees in front of her, before she can react he has one of her feet in his hands and she's using her free hand to grip his shoulder so she doesn't lose her balance. He's examining the red heel with rapid fascination, tilting her body slightly so he can see it under the poor lighting. Felicity is beginning to think that drug really did do a number on him.

"Oliver!" Felicity exclaims loudly, her fingers nails digging into the leather of his jacket. Part of her wishes he was shirtless just so she could leave a mark.

Oliver's head snaps up so suddenly, Felicity almost loses her balance but she is unaffected by his surprised expression. Felicity huffs, not caring that once again she is speaking her thoughts, "What? Slapping you would hurt my hand more than it would hurt you, at least my nails would leave a mark...yes I know how that sounded. I don't care. What are you even doing?"

Oliver shakes his head but turns his attention back to her heels. He swipes his fingers along the underside and the gently places it back on the floor. He taps her next calf as a warning and repeats the movement with her next heel, "Are these the spare heels you leave in the foundry?"

"Yes, I spilled coffee on my last pair and never replaced..." Felicity trails off as she finally catches on to what he's looking for, "Oliver, please tell me you did not put a tracker on my shoe without telling me."

Oliver in turn presses hard on the inseam of her heels and the barely audible click answers her question for her. Felicity huffs tugging her foot out of his grasp, "Do not think for a moment that just because your paranoia saved us this time, means we are not having a conversation about boundaries when we get out of here."

"Noted." Oliver remarks ruefully, and Felicity knows he's not even the least bit remorseful for his actions.  
"For the record, I would like to storm away from you, but I can't." Felicity remarks petulantly, she shakes their cuffed hands to emphasize her point.

"Equally noted." Oliver amused response, only frustrating her more. They start making their way towards the side of the room as they continue to find a way out. She really wants to slap him.

"Does it help if I said I put one on Thea's necklace?" Oliver offers sheepishly, finally realizing she is upset when she doesn't speak, "Although, she caught me and I got a fist to the jaw for it. She's got a good left hook."

"You're actually proud aren't you?" Felicity asks in exasperation, she doesn't need to see the look on his face, the pride in his voice is evident.

Oliver begins knocking lightly on the cinderblock walls as he speaks, "I will never be okay with what Merlyn did to her, but part of me can't help but be glad that she can take care of herself as messed up as that sounds."

Malcom Merlyn is naturally a sore subject for the two of them, but Felicity just can't ignore the uncertainty in Oliver's voice. She feels for the chain attaching their cuffs and slips her fingers between his own, squeezing them lightly. "It's not messed up. You just want her to be safe, and like it or not Merlyn at least taught her that. I'm sure puts you at ease, knowing she can hold her own in a fight."

"I'd feel better when the League is no longer after the people I love." Oliver says truthfully. "You know Merlyn is only a means to an end, if there is any other way..."

"Oliver, I really don't want to get into this right now." Felicity says with a sigh, releasing his hand, "We're both on edge because of our current situation and..."

"And you'll like the option to walk away when you get upset." Oliver remarks ruefully.

Felicity is about to retort, when she feels the cinderblock gives away to a wooden surface, she knocks lightly and grins and the hollow sound. "Oliver! I think I found a door..there is a handle. Think we'll get lucky?"

"Not exactly how I pictured it." Oliver teases, his grin widening when Felicity releases her hold on the door handle to look at him scandalized, "Oh c'mon, we both know your mind went there after you said that."

"You're upsetting the natural order of things." Felicity grumbles halfheartedly, "I make the inappropriate comments, and you pointedly pretend I didn't say it."

Oliver huffs out a soft laugh at her words, he's about to tease her further when he suddenly tenses, grasping her arm and tugging her behind him. Felicity immediately sobers up and goes on alert, watching as he places his hear against the wooden door. When is frown deepens, her curiosity gets the best of her and she places her own ear against the wall, she frowns at the deep breathing she hairs behind it.

"Kidnappers?" She whispers softly, her breath coming out is small puffs against Oliver's face.

Oliver shakes his head slightly, hands roaming against the door. "Too deep to be a person. Probably an animal, a big one."

Felicity eyes widen in terror at his words, "I was only joking about the killer animal."

"What?" Oliver asks suddenly distracted by her remark.

Felicity flicks her hand slightly, "Not important. What's important is the creature waiting to make us puppy chow behind this door. The door remains locked you hear me?"

The room is suddenly engulfed in light when Oliver finally finds a light switch next to the door. They both wince at the light but Felicity sees Oliver's hand is on the door handle and slaps it away. Oliver looks at her incredulously, clearly more surprised than anything.

"No!" Felicity says forcefully.

"Felicity, its the only way out." Oliver says calmly, "Its probably a guard dog. I can go and check it out..."

"With one arm?" Felicity asks incredulously, as she shakes their cuffed hands, "No, Oliver. Dig and Roy should be here soon. We can just sit and wait."

"I can get out of the cuffs." Oliver says slightly uneasily at her scrutinizing gaze.

"There is more to that than you're saying, otherwise you would have taken us out of these things from the beginning."

"I just have to dislocate my thumb and..."

"No, not happening!" Felicity says stubbornly, she grabs his hand, digging her fingernails into his skin, "There will be no breaking of thumbs! We'll go in together."

"Dislocate, not break..." Oliver trails off at the glare she sends him for correcting her. Oliver looks at her slightly put out at the suggestion, but finally relents knowing she would not have it any other way. When she's convinced he means it, she releases his hand and squares her shoulders at the door. "Alright, what's the plan?"

"I go in first, and you stay back." Oliver says easily, he's about to grab the handle yet again, but Felicity slides between him and the door, much to his annoyance, "Felicity."

"Incase you have forgotten, we are attached at the hand." Felicity says waving their joint hands yet again, "Specifically, your right hand is held back. We're just going to have to work together. I'll follow your lead."

"Felicity."

"Not up for debate." Felicity says stubbornly.

Oliver sighs in exasperation but nods nonetheless, not wanting to waste anymore of their time. "Fine, we're under the assumption its one or two dogs. Hopefully the owners aren't there as well."

"And if they are?" Felicity asks nervously, all her previous bravado slowly slipping away.

Oliver on noticing takes both of his hands in her own and squeezes it reassuringly, "I won't let anything happen to you."

Felicity nods squeezing his hand before she takes a step back, she stands next to him, her body tense as he grabs for the door handle. She holds her breath waiting for the moment he opens the door, but then deflates when the door is locked, "Well that's anti-climatic."

"I didn't think would be unlocked anyway." Oliver says with an amused smile at her expression, "Step back."

This time she does so without any argument, and braces for the moment he kicks open the door. Instead of the door opening, Oliver's entire foot goes through the door making a large gaping hole in the centre.

Oliver pulls his leg out shaking it slightly and looks across at Felicity with a sheepish grin, but frowns on the look of terror on Felicity's face. He turns back to the door just as Felicity screams out tugging both of them backwards in fright.

"Tiger!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally this was suppose to only be two chapters, but these characters have minds of their own. There will be one more chapter after this. That said you may notice the rating as changed, I started writing a certain scene and it kind of snowballed on its own and I still havent finished it, so follow up chapter should be out in a few days. Thank you for the reviews and kudos :)

They are both backing away from the door, watching as the large Bengal tiger claws at the wooden door, his paws scrapping angrily at wood. Felicity tugs at Oliver's arm as they move further and further away from the door, "Please tell me that is not a tiger."

"I wish I could." Oliver says tersely as he looks around the room hoping for an alternate exit, but the room is windowless and there is nothing around that he can use to make some kind of weapon with. "Fucking Merlyn."

" _What_?" Felicity all but yells incredulously, as her back slams into the wall behind her, "You think _Merlyn_ is behind this? Why the hell would he release a _tiger_ on us? How did he even get a tiger in Starling City?"

"It's a fucking game to him." Oliver growls. He debates the merits of taking the wood from the door to use as a weapon, but he doesn't feel comfortable getting Felicity so close to the animal, "Just like when he released Slade on Thea and I on Lian Yu."

"What kind of psycho would do that?" Felicity screams in horror, wincing when the tiger's entire head pushes through the hole of the door and it growls menacing at them, baring his teeth. 

"You and Thea would get along." Oliver says thoughtfully as he looks across at Felicity with a smile, despite the situation.

"That's _great_. If I survive this I'll invite her out for _tea_ while we bond over our mutual hate for her father!" Felicity all but yells incredulously, "You have a plan right? Tell me you have a plan. You always have a plan."

Oliver looks from the tiger that is making it way through the door much quicker than he would like then back at Felicity. He eyes the pointed tip of her heels and holds out his hand, "Give me your heels."

"What?" Felicity asks incredulously, but she's already unbuckling the side of one of heels, "This is a _bad_ plan."

"Do you have any better ones?" Oliver snaps. 

He grips the heel of her shoe, rolling his eyes when Felicity whispers a soft goodbye to the heel just as he snaps it off. He grabs the next one and does the same, shaking his head at her crest fallen expression, "I'll buy you a new pair, Felicity."

"Oliver, you get us out of here using only those broken heels and I'll personally put a tracker in every one of my footwear." Felicity says earnestly. She looks at him as he breaks off the rubber tip at the end of the pointed heel, “This is a bad idea.”

“Felicity, you’re not helping.” Oliver growls, never taking his eyes off the makeshift weapons.

“Alright. Okay.” Felicity nods her head, her fingers nervously tugging at her dress, “When we die today…”

“You are _not_ dying today.” Oliver says gruffly, he stops for moment, hands clenched around both broken heels and sighs. He glances at the door, seeing one of the tiger’s legs almost completely through the hole. He tucks the broken heels into the pockets of his jeans and looks at Felicity pointedly.

“I need you to tie your dress. Tuck it in or something.” Oliver says gesturing at her outfit, the skirt of her dress falling just above her knees.

“Tuck it in _where?”_ Felicity asks incredulously. 

She jumps as the tigers growls louder, at Oliver’s pointed look she huffs and quickly gathers her skirt to the side and tries to tie it as best she can. She wants to make a comment about the 80s making a comeback but knows now is _so_ not the time for that.

Oliver just grunts as he eyes the tiger yet again. “I’m going to hoist you up and I need you to just hold onto the bars.”

He gestures at the ceiling and sure enough there are large iron bars spanning across the ceiling. Felicity frowns, glancing at their handcuffed wrists, “And you’re just going to what _dangle_ from the ceiling while _I_ hold you from mid air?”

“No.” Oliver snaps, but then stops and breathes in deeply, his own nerves getting the best of him, “I just need you to trust me, okay?”

Felicity sobers up immediately at his tone, she slips her fingers through his own squeezing them tightly. She can’t help but jump when the tiger growls loudly in the background, her heart rate increases tenfold. “Of course, I trust you.”

Oliver nods and then releases her hand, he takes hold of his thumb, pointedly ignoring Felicity’s groan of horror, as he snaps it, dislocating it so that he can slip his hand through the metal cuff.

“Oh God.” Felicity bemoans, her face turning slightly green as she stares at his bent thumb.

“It’s fine.” Oliver grunts out in pain, he squats in front of her, holding out both arms, “C’mon.”

“Oh God.” Felicity mutters again. 

She grabs his good hand and climbs on top of his shoulders, barely grasping the tips of his fingers of his injured hand for balance. She takes hold of the bar, her legs wrapping around it tightly. She tips her head back and looks down at Oliver, who now has both heels in his hand and if her life was not literally hanging in the balance, she would laugh at the absurdity of the situation. She glances at the door and winces at the way the tiger claws its way through the door, she knows it won’t be too long before it makes it way through. She watches as Oliver slowly begins to make his way towards the tiger, shoulder’s squared, his body tense.

“Oliver.” She pleads, heart hammering in her chest. She wants to say so much, knows that she may never have the opportunity to say it again, “Oliver, I..”

“It’s going to be fine, Felicity.” Oliver cuts her off tersely, she can see the way he looks at her, _knows_ what she might want to say. He’s on high alert as he makes his way towards the door, the tiger is currently stuck between the door.

She bites on her bottom lip in terror, her eyes squint as she looks on. She doesn’t want to look, but she can’t _not_ look. She holds her breath as he inches closer, she wants to tell him just forget it and hang onto the bar with her, Diggle and Roy would find them eventually, but she knows Oliver wouldn’t do that. She watches silently as Oliver narrowly misses a paw aimed at him as he tries to stab the tiger with one of the heels, or at least knock the tiger out. 

Suddenly, the door gives away and the tiger is charging after Oliver, who is only able to imbed one heel into the tiger’s paw, something the tiger isn’t too pleased about.

“Oliver!” Felicity screams in horror just as the tiger swipes a paw across Oliver’s side. Oliver grunt of pain piercing through Felicity’s heart.

The tiger pauses on hearing her and turns his head towards her growly loudly. Felicity takes that as a sign and immediately begins to whistle, angering the tiger more. She grips the iron bar tightly, pulling her lower half closer to the bar. She watches in horror as the tiger makes its way towards her. She sees Oliver favouring his side, blood soaking through his t-shirt . She really hopes the tiger did not rip Oliver’s newly healed injuries, not that adding new injuries would be any better. She whistles again, hoping to keep the tiger occupied as Oliver grabs piece of the wood from the semi-destroyed door. 

Felicity watches in horror as the tiger jumps upwards,its hot breath just tickling her back, “Okay, was not expecting that!”

She yelps when she feels a sharp tug on her dress, the sound of fabric tearing and the cold air hitting her ass lets her know she can kiss this dress goodbye. She looks down just in time to see Oliver slam a large piece of wood over the animals head, stunning it. The tiger howls in pain as it collapses onto the floor. 

“That’s one way to do it.” Felicity quips nervously.

Oliver grunts in response hurrying over to her, he holds out his arms and looks at her, “Drop.”

“What?” Felicity asks in alarm, “Oliver you’re hurt, you can’t _catch_ me.”

“Felicity, we don’t have time to argue. _Drop_ ” Oliver tensely, shaking his arms to emphasize his point. 

“Bad idea.” She mutters softly as she closes her eyes tightly, and releases her hold on the iron bar. Oliver grunts in pain as she lands with a soft thud in his arms, her eyes fly open as she looks at him with wide eyes, her arm looped around his neck.“I didn’t think you’d actually catch me.”

“I’ll always catch you, Felicity.” Oliver grunts out sincerely, unable to hide his pain. 

Thats when she remembers his injuries, she quickly scrambles out of his arms, her arms going to his injury, “Are you okay?”

“No time.” Oliver grunts, glancing at the tiger that looks like it’s beginning to stir. He grabs her hand tugging her towards dilapidated door, “C’mon.”

Felicity bites her lip but jumps when the tiger grunts, she silently follows Oliver, wincing when she feels a few splinters piercing her bare feet. She watches as Oliver fights with the door, trying to open it but it refuses to budge, “We should fit through, just watch for splinters.”

“Too late.” Felicity mutters as she inches her way through the large hole the tiger created, mindful of the splintered wood, “Now, is probably not the best time to mention this, but this dress is totally ruined isn’t it?”

“Felicity.” 

“Ouch! I am almost 100% certain I have a splinter in my ass.” Felicity exclaims with a wince as she pulls her next leg out of the door. She looks back at Oliver frowning when his shoulders can’t seem to fit through the hole.

“Oliver?” Felicity says nervously, watching as Oliver tries to shimmy through the hole but only wincing in pain.

“Its fine…”

“Stop saying its fine! It’s anything but _fine!_ ” Felicity snaps, she wrings her fingers together looking as Oliver tries a different angle to move through whole in the door, but no avail. 

“Look, I’ll try to open the door, you go and look for a way out.” Oliver says, grunting slightly as he pressed his hand to his sore side.

“I’m not leaving you.” Felicity says stubbornly, her voice trembling, “I’ll help you. Maybe we can…”

“Felicity.”

“ _No!”_ Felicity growls angrily, “You did not survive a sword to the _chest_ , to die as kitty chow!”

“Okay, okay.” Oliver says determinedly, shaking his shoulders slightly, “Stand back, I’ll see if I can kick it open.”

Felicity wants to argue about that irritating his injury more, but she knows now is not the time. She takes a step back and waits for him to kick open the door, but they both freeze when a loud roar erupts from behind Oliver. “Oliver!”

“Go!” Oliver insists, his back slightly turned to her as he swipes a small piece of wood from the floor.

“No!” Felicity says petulantly, her voice trembling , “Oliver.”

“Go! Felicity! Get out off here!” 

She wants to scream at him, tell him to stop making her decisions for her. In that moment she just wants so many things, she can hear the sound of the tiger’s roar, barely able to see the bright orange tint of his fur from behind Oliver’s back. She feels helpless, knowing that even if she was able to get help, there is no way Oliver would be able to hold off the beast long enough. Also, she just can’t find it in herself to leave him, despite everything, she just _can't_ leave him.

“Oliver.” She whimpers softly, inching towards the door, knowing she shouldn’t watch, but she just can’t look away.

“Get help!” Oliver insists, swiping the small piece of wood back and forth, keeping the animal at bay.

She knows what he’s doing; he’s trying to convince her to leave; to find the help they both know that isn’t there, “I’m not leaving you!”

There is suddenly an ear piercing screech echoing throughout the room and to both of their amazement the tiger immediately stops its actions, almost as though its hypnotized and collapses in front of Oliver. Felicity walks tentatively to the door, peering through the hole, “Is it dead?”

Oliver shakes his head panting deeply as he leans against the wall, “Someone trained it to react like that.”

“Yes, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t damage the tiger more than you already did, Queen.” An all too familiar voice calls out from behind her, making Felicity’s blood boil.

Felicity spins around, her eyes shooting daggers at Malcolm Meryln as he scrolls up to her, nonplussed at her expression. “That thing was not easy to bring into Starling.”

“You sent a _tiger_ after us?” She splutters incredulously, “What the hell is the matter with you?”

“Oh Contrary, I sent a tiger after _Oliver_.” Malcolm says calmly, almost as though he simply sent Oliver a telegram instead of a killer animal after him. He walks up to the door and lands a solid kick to the side allowing it to fall forward at Oliver’s feet. “and you failed pitifully, might I add.”

“I don’t see how fighting a tiger would prepare me for facing Ra’s Al Ghul.” Oliver grunts. He steps through the door, allowing Felicity to help prop him up, his arm hooking onto her shoulder, as her own goes around his waist.

Malcolm’s eyes linger on Felicity briefly, before he looks at Oliver pointedly, “You are too easily distracted. You were so concerned for Ms. Smoak’s safety that you failed to see what was right in front of you.”

He points to centre of the room where the old mattress is now torn to shreds and right below it is an escape hatch, “Your emotions will get you killed, saving her shouldn’t be your first priority. _Survival_ is your first priority.”

“Leave her out of this.” Oliver growls angrily, cradling his arm that as large gashes running down the centre of his forearm. “I agreed to let you train me, not put people I care about in danger.”

“Your love is what is going to get you killed.” Malcolm warns.

“Okay, you know what? E _nough._ ” Felicity suddenly snaps, tired of Malcolm and his evil Yoda routine, “We are done being your lab rats for the day. Allowing a tiger to _maul_ him, is not preparing him for Ra’s al Ghul, if anything you’re _hindering_ his process. Now kindly take care of your overgrown pet and let us go.”

“Felicity.” Oliver says tiredly, not wanting her to go up against Merlyn like that.

“No, Oliver. You’re injured and about to pass out. I’d like to get him checked out, so get out of my way.” Felicity says with all the menaceshe can mutter, her eyes narrowing on the older man.

Malcolm for the most part looks at her slightly amused, but steps aside nonetheless, “You’ll find that home was right under your nose.”

Oliver grunts in response as he allows Felicity to help him out of the room, Felicity just tuts in annoyance as she pulls open the door, “Someone has watched Star Wars way too many times as a kid.”

Oliver coughs slightly, alerting Felicity immediately, she looks to her left and is startled to see a wide grin on Oliver’s face and he’s in fact laughing at her comment, “Are you okay?”

“I love you.” Oliver says carefree, the pain in his causing him to be slightly breathless.

“Oh.” Felicity squeaks slightly surprised, her cheeks pinking up. “Oliver.”

“I know it doesn’t change anything.” Oliver says solemnly, his eyes slightly downcast. He allows her to pull him through the narrowed hallway till they get to a large steel door, “I just thought you should…”

Felicity’s lips pressed firmly against his cuts him off mid sentence. She knows she should not make life alternating decisions after nearly facing death, but for once she's going to stop listening to her brain and listen to her heart. She pulls back, eyes bright as her hand cups his cheek, her thumb running over the prickly stubble at his jaw, "I love you too."

"Felicity." Her name comes out almost pleadingly from his lips and before he can protest at her words she's kissing him again.

They both hum in appreciation, lips sliding over one another, Oliver taking her bottom lip between his own and sucking on it gently. Felicity's entire body heats up, her fingers clenching against the back of his head. Oliver raises his arm fingers running through her ponytail, but then hisses in pain when his broken thumb catches on a few strands of her hair.

"Oh god. We need to get you checked out."Felicity says slightly breathless, her lips pink and swollen.

 She caresses his cheek looking him in the eyes and despite the obvious pain he’s in, she's surprised by the clearness of his eyes, there isa certain amount to brightness she's never seen before. His lips are swollen and stained fuchsia pink from her lipstick. He looks slightly blissful; it's either that or he's moments away from passing out. Felicity chooses to believe its the former rather than the latter, but at the same time she doesn’t want to take her chances.

She pushes the door open with her free hand both of them wincing at the bright sun, the warmer than normal weather tickling their skin. On seeing the bright unlit Verdant sign, Felicity scowls,"Right under our noses.”

Oliver grunts in response, his hold on her waist tightening, Felicity winces as her bare feet touch the warm frown, but ignores it knowing she needs to get Oliver to the foundry.

“There you two are!” Diggle calls out from their right, “That tracker went off ages ago but it kept coming back to the club and when we didn't hear from the two of you, we got suspicious. What the hell happened to you?”

“What kind of kinky shit did you get up to?” Roy asks his nose wrinkling in disgust at the sight of Felicity’s torn dress and lack of heels and most noticeably the handcuffs swimming from her wrist, having not seen Oliver’s bleeding side that was hidden slightly by Felicity’s body. “Actually, I don’t wanna know.”

Both Felicity and Oliver turn to him simultaneously, wearing matching scowls of annoyance. Roy takes a step back raising his hands in defence, but then frowns on seeing the blood soaked stain on Oliver’s shirt, “You looked like you were mauled.”

“Merlyn.” Felicity says with a growl, giving Diggle a grateful smile as the older man takes the grunt of Oliver’s weight. She takes a step away from Oliver, winces as she stands on a pebble.

“He thought sicking a tiger on us was some kind of messed version of bootcamp.” Felicity grumbles. She bites her lip in concern when Oliver hisses in pain, “Tigers are _big_. I’m pretty sure I’m now turned off of any kind of feline. Let’s get him back to the foundry. Do we have rabies shots? I can’t believe we need to start investing in rabies shots, are we going to have to stock up on silver bullets and wooden stakes next? Sprinkle some holy water and wear neckless made out of garlic.”

“There are no such thing as vampires, or werewolves, I promise.” Oliver says with soft chuckle, but then winces in pain at the action.

“Good, thats good.” Felicity murmurs, but still bites her lip in thought. She’s about to voice her concert but then squeals in surprise when she finds herself being hoisted in the air and into Roy’s arms. Oliver pulls immediately from Dig’s side grunting in pain as he turns around to see what has happen, the tension in his shoulders easing slightly when he sees Roy holding Felicity, but his eyes narrow considerably.

“You’ve been walking on your toes the entire time and wincing with each step.” Roy says easily, shifting Felicity in his arms “Where the hell are your shoes? Captain America though, _really_?”

“Roy!” Felicity blushes crimson as she tugs the hole of her dress closed, she doesn’t dare look over to Oliver and Diggle. “My heels apparently can double as spears…ooh or stakes! If I buy wooden heels then we’d be set!”

Roy laughs wholeheartedly at her comment as they resume their walk towards the foundry, “Alright, Buffy whatever you say.”

Felicity chuckles then winces as her dress tugs at a splinter she just _knows_ is embedded in her ass, “I may or may not have a few splinters in a few questionable places.”

“So you guys _did_ get up to some kinky shit?” Roy asks, his voice low, smart enough to not ask that when Oliver is within ear shot. Felicity glares at him, slapping him in the back of the head for good measure, but her actions only encourage him, “Dude’s got pink lipstick all over his face.”

“It’s not all over his face! I only kissed him on the lips…” Felicity mouth clamps shut as she releases a slow groan, Roy chuckling at her expense, “Shut up.”

“Thea owes me 30 bucks.” Roy says with a grin. 

Felicity glares at him, about to reprimand him, but on hearing Oliver’s cry of pain she slips out his arms and pads her way over to the medic table, her hands already inspecting Oliver’s body. “The ones on your arms don’t look too bad, I think we just need to clean it and rub some ointment on it. John, you have to set his thumb, give him something for the pain. I’ll have to cut off your shirt to see your wound. There is a _lot_ of blood.”

“Hey. hey.” Oliver calls out soothingly, his good hand clasping her hand, stilling her movements. He waits until they lock eyes before he speaks. “I’m okay. It looks worse than it feels. Let Roy look at your feet.”

Felicity takes a deep breath, nodding at his words. She squeezes his hand, before she grabs the scissors lying on the metal table, “Let me just make sure the bleeding has stopped and stitch you up.”

Oliver relents, knowing she wouldn’t back down, he relaxes against the table as they begin to tend to his wounds. Digglenow poking at Oliver’s broken thumb gently, “You should probably get this X-Rayed.”

“It’s a clean dislocation.” Oliver says easily, wincing in pain, “I’ve done it before.”

“Somehow, I don’t find that reassuring.” Felicity mutters a she slowly peels away Oliver’s grey shirt.

“You dislocated your thumb to get out of the cuffs?” Roy asks his face turning slightly green at the thought, “I guess that’s one way to do it.”  

“Roy, be useful and get Felicity out of the handcuffs.” Oliver all but barks at the younger man.

“Now that’s a sentence I never _want_ to hear my brother say to my ex-boyfriend.” A new voice calls out slightly amused. Thea walks into the foundry, a smile on her face, but her smile falters on seeing her brother on the table, “What the hell happened?”

“Long story.” Oliver grunts out, wincing when Felicity presses the antiseptic wipe harder on his torso than necessary.

“Malcolm Meryln decided that sending a _tiger_ after your brother was a good way to test his survival instincts.” Felicity says dryly, glaring at Oliver who is about to protest, and silencing him with that one look. “Cause _clearly_ living on an _island_ for five years, is not enough training.”

“What?” Thea asks in alarm, she glances at Felicity’s bare feet, torn dress and the handcuffs hanging from her wrist, “You were with him? He sent a _tiger_ on both of you? Ollie, this is not okay.”

“I’m fine.” Oliver promises, turning to look at his sister, “It’s worse that it looks, just a few scratches.”

“ _Scratches_ don’t leave gaping holes in your side, or broken limbs!” Thea protests, “First the island, now this. Ollie this is getting ridiculous. Malcolm is just playing with us and now he’s dragging in other people! You can’t tell me you’re okay with him playing _literal_ cat and mouse with your girlfriend as the mouse!”

“Not the girlfriend.”

“She’s not my girlfriend.”

Both Felicity and Oliver protests weakly, Thea simply looks at them with disbelief and rolls her eyes, “ _Alright_ , are you okay with him doing this to the woman you apparently share the same shade of _lipstick_ with then?”

Both Roy and Diggle cough simultaneously as they try to hide their laughter, Felicity’s cheeks are almost as pink as her lipstick. Without thinking she brushes her thumb over Oliver’s lips trying and failing to get it off. “Oh! Why is that still on, this isn’t even the 24 hour one that I use…Oh frack.”

“I see.” Thea chuckles lightly,her smile brightening when she sees the way her brother is looking at Felicity. She squeezes his forearm and takes in his body for anymore injuries, “I’m going to talk to Malcolm, this is not okay. Call me if you need anything, but I suspect you’ll be in good hands.”

Felicity nods at Thea, a silent promise that she’ll take care of her brother. Thea smiles at her, but then looks down at her brother, a smirk gracing her features, “Now remember Ollie, nothing to strenuous, don’t want to be pulling those stitches your _girlfriend_ just carefully put in.”

“ _Speedy._ ” Oliver groans in embarrassment, his ears turning a light shade of pink, daring not to look at Felicity. Thea just grins in delight and bids them all a goodbye.

“Sorry about her.” Oliver grunts out to Felicity, who is cleaning up the last bit of scratches on his forearms, her own cheeks red in embarrassment. His thumb already set and bandaged.

Diggle clears his throat gaining their attention, he gestures to the bottle of pain medications on the side table. He notes that Roy was able to take the handcuffs off of Felicity and grabs his jacket as he addresses Oliver. “You’re all set, don’t forget to take these. That thumb is going to bother you for a while, so don’t be an idiot. Roy and I are going to go. You’ll check her feet, make sure it nothing too serious? There is also some blood on her back, you should make sure the tiger didn’t scratch her as well.”

“I want to say something, but I won’t put it past Oliver to break my limbs.” Roy quips, grinning at the growl that Oliver emits as he wavesat the two. Felicity grins when Diggle slaps Roy over the head and mutters something to the younger man. 

The room suddenly goes quiet and Oliver and Felicity are both aware that they are yet again on their own, this time minus the handcuffs or the impending danger of a tiger. The days actions, the words they exchanged slowly catching up with them and for the first time in ages, Felicity is at a lost for words. 


	3. Chapter 3

With the lack of adrenaline coursing through their blood streams as well as the lack of impending death, they are both acutely aware of what transpired between them. Felicity doesn't regret what she said or did, but now she's unsure where that leaves them. Oliver's words following his declaration come crashing back to her and although she returns his sentiments, she knows his words do ring true, they are both still in disagreement about his decision, about a lot of things.

"I can't keep doing this." Felicity blurts out, startling them both.

Oliver frowns at her in confusion, but then his expression falls and he looks at her absolutely devastated, the look in his eyes making Felicity's heart ache."Okay. I shouldn't have expected things to change."

"No, no, no." Felicity says quickly taking a step towards him,ignoring the feel of the splinters digging deeper into heels. She grabs his hand in her own, looking at him earnestly, her heart hammering in her chest, "I don't want to keep you at arms length anymore. I love you, Oliver."

"I love you too..." Oliver says eagerly, smile blossoming over his features.

"Let me finish." Felicity says with a laugh, both of them now with matching grins. She then sobers up and looks at him seriously, "I want to do this with you, and I know you want this too, but Oliver if we're going to do this I need to know you're going to consider my feelings when it comes to the decisions that you make."

"If this is about Malcolm, I'll talk to him. He won't be using you in his twisted games." Oliver says seriously, frown forming, and Felicity hates that she took away that carefree look he so rarely has

"Not just that, I don't like the fact that you and Thea are training with him." Oliver goes to protest, but Felicity places a finger over his lips and to her surprise it halts his movements immediately. She looks at her finger thoughtfully, "Huh, I should remember that little trick... _anyway_ , can we at least discuss it? I understand why you're doing what you're doing, and that you're scared. I'm scared as well, but there has to be another way."

Oliver sighs, his much larger hand clasping over her own, instead of pulling her hand away, he presses a soft kiss to her knuckles, "We can talk about it."

"That's all I ask." Felicity says softly. She looks at him with a coy smile, tugging gently at his hands, and he allows her to pull him towards her body. She gets up on her tiptoes tilting her head towards him, she smiles widely as he leans down, meeting him halfway. His lips slide over hers, capturing her lower lip between his own, sucking on it gently as she sighs softly against his lips. Oliver releases her hand, as he is about to run it through her hair when he pulls back with a groan, holding his injured side.

"Oh! What are we doing? You need to sit,” Felicity demands, ushering him to the nearest seat. “Let me just clean up these things, and then I'll take you home. You need to rest. I would never be able to look your sister in the eye, if you pulled out those stitches cause you over exerted yourself.”

"Who's going to tell her?" Oliver remarks slyly, but then holds up his hand in defence when Felicity gives him a hard look."Seriously, though we can take this slow as you want. I'm not going anywhere, Felicity."

She sobers at his words, both of them knowing how little meaning they truly have. Oliver on recognizing his mistake takes a step towards her, "Felicity, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have..."

" _Sit_." Felicity demands gesturing to the stool, cutting him off, not wanting to get into the inevitable fight Oliver would soon have to face.

"Please don't shut me out." Oliver begs, surprisingher to say the least. He takes a seat on the stool and looks at her pleadingly, "This works both ways, right? I can't shut you out, and you can't shut me out either."

Felicity sighs but nods her head in agreement, "You're right, but can we talk about that later? I think we both need a little breathing time from today's events and _you_ need some rest."

"Okay." Oliver concedes. She squeezes his fingers gently, before she walks back to medical table to put away the equipment, wincing with each step she takes, the splinters in her food making their presence known. 

“Felicity.” Oliver calls out softly, grunting as he pulls himself into a sitting position, good hand going to his side, “Leave that, let me take look at your feet. You’ve been walking on your heels this entire time."

Felicity sighs, but tentatively walks over to the medical table,"It's not a big deal, I could probably...ouch, okay fine it hurts like a bitch."

Oliver smirks at her as she slides onto the table, a grimace still gracing her features. She places a bare foot on Oliver's lap and watches silently as he begins togently clean the dirt from the sole of her foot. He is meticulous as he works, but gentle with ever brush of the pads of is fingers against her skin mindful of the small splinters of wood embedded in her skin. She knows they came to a silent agreement that they would shelf things for later, after they have both recovered for the day, but her mind can't stop thinking about that kiss. What do you say to the love of you life after you've declared your love not once, but twice and he's currently tending to your injuries? 'Thanks for the mind-numbing kiss? Maybe we should do it again? Why do people even call in mind-numbing, if anything all my nerves were on high alert and just wanted more.'

"It was a pretty amazing kiss" Oliver quips lightly, tweezer hovering over her bare foot as he looks up at her in amusement.

"I did it again didn't I?" Felicity asks unnecessarily. Oliver just smiled brightly in return, no doubt enjoying her inability to keep her thoughts to herself. She suddenly yelps in pain, when he tugs out a particularly large piece of wood, it can't really be referred to as a splinter at this point, "Ow!"

"Sorry." Oliver apologizes, her quickly rubs some ointment onto her heels and then to her utter amazement he places a soft kiss on the tips of her toes, "There you go."

Oliver Queen essentially just kissed away her 'boo boo' and damn him if her heart didn't just leap at the thoughtful yet uncharacteristic gesture. She smiles at him warmly, her foot still resting in the palm of his hand despite the fact that he was finished, "Thank you."

"Anytime." Oliver says with a smile, but then grimaces when he twists slightly and no doubt pulls on his stitches. 

"Oh, okay mister you need to lie down and let those injuries heal." Felicity says sternly. She's about to insist on taking him home but suddenly yelps in pain when she slides forward onto the medical table.

"What's wrong?" Oliver asks with concern, immediately getting to his feet. He places a hand on her shoulder and swipes her hair aside to look at her back, "Is it your back? Dig said you had some blood on your dress."

"I assumed that was yours. My back is fine." Felicity answers wincing again as she shifts in place. Her back is fine, it’s the questionable splinter, that she _knows_ for a fact, is the cause of her pain.

"Felicity" Oliver calls out sternly, pointedly picking up on the way she avoids his concerned gaze, "Tell me whats wrong."

Felicity nose wrinkles slightly, as she stands on her still sore feet, despite his protests. "It's nothing I can't handle. I need get out of this dress, then I can take you home...I mean...oh who cares , you can take that sentence however you want."

"Fe-li-ci-ty." Oliver drones out her name in that way he does when he knows exactly what she's doing and does not approve in the slightest. "You're avoiding."

She's about to deny it again, but one look at his expression and she knows that won't be the case. She sighs in defeat, and gestures to her torn dress, the gaping hole has her showing more thigh than she ever would. She's pretty sure she's flashed her underwear more times than she cares to count, but Oliver seems unfazed, at least to her.

"I wasn't kidding about the questionable splinters." She says evasively, hoping he will pick up on her uncomfortable tone. Its clear from his concerned expression though, Oliver is more focused on the fact that she is in pain, rather than how uncomfortable she feels.

"Why didn't you say something earlier?" Oliver questions already grabbing the supplies from the tray and tugging them to her, "Where is it?"

Felicity rubs her neck uncomfortable, and splutters it out in one quick breath, "It's kinda in my ass."

The way Oliver's fingers hover above the tweezer and his eyebrows rise at her words, would be funny if Felicity wasn't so consumed by her own embarrassment. She holds up her hands "I can take it out myself, you don't need to..."

Oliver turns to look at her incredulously, "And how exactly are you going to do that?"

"I've got a compact mirror in my bag, "Felicity gestures weakly to her gym bag that she keeps in the foundry with workout clothes, "See this is why we needed a proper mirror in the bathroom!"

"Felicity don't be ridiculous, I can do it for you." Oliver says in exasperation no doubt at her trying to lighten the mood, but despite his tone, she can see the tips of his ears turning slight red. 

"This is _not_ how this is supposed to go!" Felicity says petulantly, at Oliver's confused expression she sighs in exasperation gesturing wildly between the two of them, "The first time I take my clothes off in front of you is supposed to be romantic and _sexy._ Maybe after anice dinner, we'd have some wine; a little _fun.._. Not cause we got chased by a stupid tiger and I ended up with a splinter in my ass!"

"This won't count then. We'll file this under strict _platonic_ circumstances." Oliver says his eyes twinkling with merit and Felicity knows for a fact that he's making fun of her, "I promise you we will get a complete do o- _Oh!"_

She presses her elbows into the medical table as she leans over, the hem of skirt flipped up so her ass is on display, her Captain America thong finally working to her advantage.Felicity smirks at the way his voice goes up an octave and he trails off, rendered speechless, serves him right for teasing her. 

Felicity giggles slightly when Oliver is yet to comment, she looks over her shoulder and smiles at him, "Oliver, I'm flattered and all, but since we can't do anything with your injury, you should probably just get on with it... _Jeezus!_ I mean take the thing out...oh there is no unsexual way to phrase this, is there?"

Her rambles seem to have pulled him out of his stupor, and he takes a step towards her, eyes narrowing playfully, "You're playing with fire, Ms Smoak."

And just like that, any leverage Felicity thought she had, flew right out the window as her mind conjures up one of the _many_ fantasies she's had while she was Oliver's EA. Although, the medical table is new, the result seems to be the same. Felicity's face flamesat the images dancing around her mind. Oliver groans softly, " _Felicity_ , I can't do this if you're looking at me like that."

“Sorry,” She says meekly, facing forward so she doesn't have to look at him. She then begins to mutter to herself, "Focus on the pain...okay _no_!...platonic, right platonic. Oh this so totally _not_ platonic."

“Felicity,” Oliver calls out sternly, and damn him if the way his voice strains at calling out her name, doesn't make her toes curl and heat gather low in her belly.

"Okay, you need to just not talk and do the..." She gestures wildly to her lower region, pointedly looking forward and not back at him.

"You need to tell me where the splinter is." Oliver calls out voice still slightly strained, "You also have some scratches along your um...you have a few scratches."

At his inability to use the word ass, Felicity giggles loudly causing Oliver grumble in frustration, "I'm trying to be a gentleman here, you're not helping."

Felicity bites her lip to hold in her giggles, but then using her finger to point on her right ass cheek, right where the splinter is. She winces when she feels a long line across her skin, "Is it bleeding? Cause I thought the pain was just the splinter, but it's really burning."

"The scratches aren't deep enough, but the skin is raw." Oliver supplies, his voice more controlled now that he's more focused on her injuries, "I'm going to take out the splinter, then I'll clean the cuts."

Once he pulls the splinter out, Felicity tries not to squirm at the way the coarse pads of his thumb feel against her skin, as he rubs it slowly, clearly feeling for anymore splinters. She's certain he's not aware of how his actions are affecting her, knowing he's more concerned about her injuries. After a few seconds he gently tugs the hem of her skirt back over her and then tugs her into a standing position.

"What happened to cleaning the cuts?" Felicity asks curiously, but she stops short when she sees the way Oliver's eyes are slightly dilated. 

He slips his fingers through her own and gently leads her away from the medical table. She follows his lead easily, hands still clasped but her curiosity, as always gets the best of her, "Where are we going?"

"You're not the only one with a fantasy or two." Oliver looks over his shoulder and sends her wink. "Don't think I didn't know where your mind went, before."

"Like you don't have some of your own office fantasies." Felicity quips, her cheeks flaming at her words Oliver in turn just chuckles, basically confirming her suspicions as he tugs open the bathroom door.

"This is a little different." Oliver says softly, ushering her into the small room. He moves to the shower, turning it on the entire way, the room immediately beginning to fill with steam. “Granted, I didn't exactly picture this in the foundry bathroom, but it will do."

Felicity eyes the water crashing down on the white tiles and then looks at Oliver's bare chest, with uncertainty, "Oliver, your injuries."

Oliver grabs one of the large strips of plastic under the tiny shelf, Felicity insisted they installed ages ago. The large strips of plastic, are essentially garbage bags that she stripped open and used as form of protection. Whenever any of the boys end up injured and can't get the injury wet. He offers the piece of plastic looking at her hopefully, and they both know he's asking more than just her help to secure his wound. Her heart can't help but flutter at his intensions, she knows this isn't about sex, this is about Oliver just wanting to take care of her, and more importantly wanting her to take care of him. 

She nods her head and slowly begins to apply the strip over his wounds, taking the piece of duck tape he offers her, so that she can secure the plastic over his wound. She pats his stomach lightly, this time her fingers lingering longer than normal, her index finger making a small sweeping movement along the indentation of his abs. Her breath hitches as she realizes his abs are as firm as they look. Her cheeks heat up as she wonders if other parts are equally as firm.

"You'll have to wash the dirt and stuff out of the other cuts. "She says softly, hand still lingering on his abdomen.

"Turn around." Oliver nods, placing his hands on her shoulders, gently turning her around. He places a soft kiss on her neck, his hot breath tickling her skin, making her pores raise. He flicks the zipper of her dress and speaks softly, "Can I?"

Felicity nods, unable to speak, the temperature in the room suddenly skyrockets and not because of the steam thats slowly gathering around them. She feels Oliver's callous fingers linger on her skin as he slowly pulls down he zipper, the sound drowned out by the pattering of the water against the shower tiles. He cups her shoulders, fingers slipping below her dress and gentle tugs it off, allowing the dress to pool at her feet.

"Another one bites the dust." Felicity says forlornly at her fallen dress. 

She slowly turns around to face him, now acutely aware of that she's only standing in front of him in her deep blue bra and her Captain America underwear. Oliver's gaze slowly traces up her body, his eyes dilated as he looks at her with hunger, his finger tips just grazing her forearms. A smile tugs at the corner of his mouth as he looks at her blue bra more closely, "For a moment I thought you'd have the shield on the cups."

Felicity huffs, hands going to her hips as she tilts her head, "Are you making fun of my choice in underwear?"

"Nope, never." Oliver says with a grin, shaking his head to emphasize point. 

Felicity narrows her eyes at him, but neither can keep the charade and they both end up laughing, the tension easing between them. She no longer feels as though an elephant is sitting on her chest, instead she is just left with increasing anticipation mixed in with excitement. 

Felicity smiles coyly at him, her nimble fingers moving over his belt buckle, she quickly works on freeing him of both his belt and jeans, her eyes never leaving his. They silently work together to rid Oliver of his jeans and socks and shoes, until he's standing in front of her in only his grey boxer-briefs. Despite his intentions, there is a noticeable bulge in the front of his boxers, and small part of Felicity is thrilled that she is not the only one affected by the slow progression of their relationship.She licks her lips as her eyes roam his body, and as much as she appreciate the fine specimen of all _male_ in front of her, she can't help but frown at all the scratch marks that are littered across his forearms and even on her cheek. She shudders to think what would have happened if the tiger was able to make a lasting impression, she's pretty sure the tiger's paw was larger than Oliver's face.

"Hey." Oliver calls out gently, taking a step towards her and tucking the stray bit of hair that has fallen from her ponytail, behind her ear, "We don't have to do this if you don't want to."

"Oh no. I was just looking at your scratches, it was really a close call. " Felicity says quickly with reassurance. She smiles at him coyly and places her hand on his hip, tugging at the waistband of his boxer-briefs gently, "Your ass is mine, Queen."

Oliver laughs wholeheartedly at her words, his own arms snaking around her waist and pushing her flush against his body, both of them gasping when his already hardening length presses against her bare stomach. She hums at the heat radiating off of him, rising on her toes to kiss him softly. Her hands move to his back, her nails raking against his skin, earning a low groan from Oliver as his teeth nip at her lower lip. Her fingertips dance against the coarse lines of his scars, as she tries to map them out, recalling all the times she's seen them, wanting to know the story behind each scar. She pauses briefly against the newest scar, its right below the tip of his shoulder blade. She feels the freshly healed skin, smoother than the older scars and she has to bite back a sob when she thinks about how he got that one. Memories of those dreadful weeks without him flooding back to her, knowing this was the reason she thought she lost him. Oliver immediately feels the way she tenses and pulls back to look her in the eye, he cups her face with both hands, thumb rubbing softly against her cheek, "Hey, I'm here and I'm okay."

Felicity bites her lip, unable to stop her eyes from filling up with tears. She tries to smile at Oliver sheepishly, but it turns into more of a grimace than anything else. "I'm sorry. I'm ruining the moment. I know you're here now, and you're safe, but seeing the scars, reminds me that you _weren't_ here. For six weeks you were just _gone_ and there wasn't anything I could do about it, there wasn't anything that _helped_. You were _dead_. I know you're not obviously, standing in front of me half-naked and very much _alive_. I just can't get that moment we found out, out of my head..."

Suddenly, she was engulfed by Oliver's large arms, her face pressed up against his chest, his entire body encasing her in his. He presses a soft kiss to forehead, he doesn't say anything, he simply just holds her and Felicity is pretty sure she just fell in love with him all over again. 

"You know that, if I could promise you the world, I would." Oliver whispers softly, his voice full of emotion, "If I could change things... _stop_ them from happening."

"I know you would." Her voice equally soft, she places a chaste kiss over his Bratva tattoo and smiles up at him sheepishly, "Still want that shower with this crying mess of a girl?"

Oliver barks out a laugh, his hands spanning the length of her waist, fingers hooking under the thing strap of her underwear. "Felicity, I'm _always_ going to want to share a shower with you."

"That's good to know." Felicity says with a smile.She places a brief kiss on his lips before she takes a small step back, Oliver's hands around her waist preventing her from moving further away, "Strip for me, Queen."

"Tit for tat?" Oliver asks wiggling his eyebrows at Felicity suggestively. 

"How about we leave the bad innuendo... _Oh!"_ Felicity trails off her jaw dropping, almost simultaneously with Oliver's boxer-briefs.

Suddenly, its like a switch has been flipped and Felicity is pressed up against him, her lips crashing down on his. Hands are roaming; her finger nails digging into his shoulders almost as though she just want to crawl into him, get as close as she can. Oliver hands move along her skin, fingers unhooking her bra, slowly peeling it off of her, he doesn't wait for the material to fall away, already lowering his mouth to her right breast. Felicity gasps out in surprise, her fingers carding through his hair, tugging on it gently.

“ _Oliver,_ " She moans out softly, his tongue swirling around her nipple making her breath hitch.

Her back arches as he releases her breast with an audible pop, before she can voice her displeasure, his wet lips are already engulf her taunt nipple of her opposite breast. She pants out his name, as he plants soft kisses along the curves, teeth nipping at her skin, making her keen.His fingers trail down her back, leaving goosebumps in their wake. He hooks his fingers around the thin strap of her underwear, tugging them over her legs, just enough so that they are no longer in his way. He lays his hands on her ass, pressing into her skin and suddenly she's gasping out but not in pleasure, but pain, immediately jumping towards him and away from his hand. Her elbow presses into his injured side, and he too is hissing in pain, but instead of stepping away, he placing his hands on her hips to steady her.

It's like a bucket of ice water has been dropped over their heads, and they are both painfully aware of their injuries, both of them immediately tripping over their own apologies. Felicity suddenly releases a loud giggle, her head now pressed against Oliver's chest. Oliver's chest rumbling with his own laughter as he squeezes her sides.

"We're hopeless." Felicity says lightly. 

She takes a step away from him, despite his protests and tugs her underwear down her legs. She steps out of them never breaking eye contact with Oliver, who is looking at her with eager anticipation. She holds out her hand to his and smiles at him apologetically, "Sorry, buddy. Sex is off the table until that wound heals. I want you in perfect working condition when I take you."

Oliver snorts at her words, and Felicity sighs deeply, but then squares her shoulders, spinning around to face him as she steps under the cascade of water, "No,I won't apologize for that one. I have plans for you Mr. Queen, lots and lots of plans, none of them that involve you pulling out those stitches. I need you in tip top shape."

Oliver laughs wholeheartedly at her words, he takes a step towards her and into the cascading water, his hands automatically finding her waist. "What about my own plans?"

Felicity bites her lip, smiling at him coyly, "You can have your way with me the next time."

"Accidental babble?" Oliver asks in amusement. He affectionately tugs at a wet blonde curl, smiling down at her.

"Nope, _that_ I meant." 

She grabs the bar of soup from the caddy, lathering it up on her skin, when Oliver takes a step forward taking the soap from her, "Let me."

She gulps at the way his gaze bores into her, his callous fingers rubbing the bar of soup gently over her skin. He lathers the soap over her stomach, moving his hands sensually over her heated skin, when his fingers skim over her breasts, she gasps as he tweaks her puckered nipples, but as quickly as he starts, he moves on, smirking at her disgruntle grunt of protests. He places the soap back on the caddy, hands still filled with suds. He runs his hands down her back, gentle massaging her ass, mindful of the large scratch on her left ass cheek. Felicity hums in approval pressing her ass back into his hand, ignoring the stinging and focusing more on the _other_ sensations caused by his hands, her own hands resting on his shoulders, gripping them tightly.

“Did I hurt you?” Oliver asks softly, his lips pressed against the crook of her neck, licking the drops of water gathering there.

“Don’t stop.” She all but whines, tugging at his shoulder desperately.

Oliver chuckles softly, pressing a kiss to her neck, his hands squeezing her round flesh, once, twice and he then dances his finger tips over her skin moving to her front. He slides his fingers between her legs, both of them gasping out when he finds her ready and dripping, and not from the water crashing down around them.

“ _Oliver_.” Felicity keens, spreading her legs wider, to give him better access.

His fingers dance along the edge of her folds, teasing her, building her frustration. One, two, three strokes with just the tips of his fingers, gentle prodding but never slipping in more than his first knuckle. 

“Oliver, _please._ ” Felicity begs, her hips rocking against his hand, nails digging into his bicep.

Oliver finally relents and his first two fingers slip between her folds with ease. Felicity releases a deep low moan, as she pushes against his fingers, clenching them nightly. She grips the wall for support with one hand, as she urges him to speed up with the thrusts of her hips. Instead he pulls back, fingers only lightly pressing against her heated flesh, slick with want. He presses his thumb onto her puddle of nerves, she whimpers his name softly, forehead pressing into his chest.

Suddenly, he slides three fingers between her folds, thumb circling her clit, and she gasps out loudly at the quick change in pace, her hips beginning to meet his thrust as the tension builds within her. She’s close and the moment they lock eyes, she knows he knows it as well, he leans forward capturing her lips, sucking on her top lip just as he twists his fingers, thrusting into her, and she gasps into his mouth, hips shaking as she finally finds her release.

Oliver slowly slips his fingers out of her, as she eases back onto the heels of her feet. She watches through hooded eyes as he raises his finger,her essences tickling their senses as he warps his lips around his finger sucking it lightly, both of them groaning simultaneously. She tugs his hand away, and crashes her lips against his own, his protests dying on her lips, she can taste herself on his lips, and that all too familiar rush of heat starts building low in her belly once again. Even more so as she feels his erection straining against her stomach, poking her almost reminding her that its there, not that she could forget.

He tugs her back under the shower, the water washing away any lingering soap she has on her body. She stands flat on her feet, her eyes level with one of his biggest scars, that forms an odd shaped star on his upper pectoral, she kisses it lightly before she looks up at him with wide eyes. His eyes are equally wide and clear, warmth spreading throughout her body at his loving gaze. Her blonde hair is plastered to her head, his own slick with water, little fat round droplets running down their noses and neither can stop smiling.

“I love you.” Oliver whispers warmly, almost as if it’s a secret, a secret he can finally share with her.

She rises on her toes, kissing him soundly, “I love you too.” 

Before he can react though, she’s holding him by the waist and getting pushing him out of the cascading water. She smiles at him coyly, fingers skimming his torso, mindful of his injury, as she lower herself to the floor, Oliver’s soft whimper of her name making her smile.

“You don’t…”

His protest dies on his lip, at the hard look she gives him. She nods in agreement, earning a soft strained smile from Oliver, before she turns her focus back to the task at hand, so to speak. She licks her lips in anticipation, her fingers wrapping around his length, marvelling at the way it lengthens further in her hands.

“ _Felicity_.”

Oliver low protests has her halting her keen observations and she slowly lowers her lips on him, kissing the tip slightly before she takes him in completely. Oliver releases a deep low moan, his fingers tangling in her hair, but he doesn’t push her, instead letting her set the pace. Part of her loves him a little bit more for that, she can tell he’s holding back, just by the tension radiating off him in waves.  

She slowly begins to move her head, lips tightening around him ever so slowly, she uses his soft gasps as markers as to whether or not she should increase her speed or lighten up on her suction. Oliver fists her hair, his hips rocking gently against her, he pants out her name begging her softly. Her entire body heats up at the want in his tone, her lips humming against his skin, making him gasp in surprise. She reaches up to squeeze him, teeth grazing against his skin. Oliver tugs on her hair roughly, his voice rough with warning, and she knows he’s close. She ignores his urges for her to move, and hollows her cheeks, fingers twisting around his base and she feels the moment she pushes him over the edge as his entire body jerks just before hot warm liquid fills her mouth. 

After a few seconds, she releases him with a soft pop, and slowly gets to her feet, watching in amusement as Oliver collapses against he wall behind him, still panting, his entire skin red and not from the shower. He gazes at her softly with a slow lazy smile, as he gestures weakly for her to come towards him, and his lack of energy has her giggling lightly. 

“You okay there, big guy?” Felicity ask with affection, she steps between his spread legs and leans against his chest.

Oliver only hums in response, making Felicity giggle even more, she sighs in content when he places a kiss on her forehead. She then tugs them to more of an upright position and pulls him under the shower, “C’mon, we should finish washing up. Your lack of words has me a bit worried. Death by blow job, may sound like a nice way to go, but it’s really not.”

At her words Oliver barks out a loud laugh, it’s so loud and carefree, so unlike the Oliver she knows, she briefly wonders if orgasm mixed with his injuries has him delirious.

“Not delirious, just happy.” Oliver promises with a lazy smile. She still thinks part of it because of his injury, but she doesn’t voice it, his own happiness seeming to be infectious. He dusts some soap suds on her nose, smiling at her warmly, “Thank you.”

Warmth courses through her body at his loaded words, and they both know he’s not talking about what she just did for him, knows those two words hold so much more meaning than just gratitude. She goes to her tip toes and places a soft wet kiss against his already wet skin and whispers softly against his lips, “Always.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm blown away by the response to this fic, it was suppose to be a short little thing to ease me into writing for a new couple and it just turned into a massive 14k fic. I enjoyed writing this a lot and I'm so glad so many of you enjoyed it as well, thank you for the comments and the kudos as well :)


End file.
